Chassagne-Montrachet Clos Saint-Jean
Premier CruGrape Variety :
ChardonnayVineyard
Site: located in the South of the Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet is one of the villages, together with Meursault and Puligny-Montrachet, making up the celebrated "Côte des blancs" (the slope of the "whites"). The vineyard stretches at mid-slope, west of the village.History & tradition: the name comes from "cassanos", a Celtic word used for a place where oak trees grow; "rachet" means a poor, dry, infertile soil, a paradox when thinking of the richness of the Chassagne-Montrachet wines!
Soil: complex soil, made up of marl, limestone, yellow or red clay, scree and gravel; these soils are mostly light.
Viticulture
Plantation density: 10,000 stocks/ha in order to extract all possible nuances from the terroir.Pruning: Guyot.
Yield: 52hl/ha, low on purpose to limit the production of each vine stock.
Supply: grapes and must purchased from regular suppliers.
Vinification
Pressing: very slow so as to respect fruit. Juices from the very last pressings are not retained.No yeasts or enzymes are used. The wine goes directly into barrels after "débourbage" (decanting of white wine to reduce sediment).
Ageing
Type: in barrels (25% in new oak).Length: 12 months.
Throughout the ageing process, decisions are taken only after careful tasting evaluation. The data obtained is then completed through technical analysis. As with every other Joseph Drouhin wine, absolute priority is given to the true expression of terroir and character of the vintage.
Tasting note by Véronique Boss-Drouhin
"Bright golden colour. Aromas of exotic fruit evolving with age towards grilled almond hints. Elegant and well-balanced. Good persistence on the palate".Vintage
2014 is a seductive vintage, quite similar to 2012 and 2010. In Côte de Beaune the wines offer a nice tension. The nuances of the terroirs are enhanced.
Serving
Temperature: 13°C (55°C).Cellaring: 4 to 15 years.